"Yeah..." Facing Sirin like this, Shu gave a knowing smile.
"So, who do you like? I quite like that Demon Lord..."
Sirin's head whipped around instantly. Her golden eyes, wide and round, stared at Shu in utter shock. "How can you like the Demon Lord?!" she blurted out.
No need for empathy; Shu could see with his own eyes how truly shocked Sirin was.
"Why can't I?" Shu retorted with a playful grin.
"But—!" Sirin couldn't even sit still anymore. She shot up, stood before Shu with her hands spread wide. "But that's the Demon Lord! The superdu~per big villain of the whole show!"
When describing how evil the Demon Lord was, Sirin even stood on her tiptoes, stretching her arms out and drawing a huge circle with her hands.
Shu nodded in agreement. "I know he's a superdu~per big villain." Shu mimicked Sirin's tone, smiling. "But I'm a bad guy too."
Sirin's expression froze. Shu's answer had clearly taken her by surprise.
But looking at Shu, who was now pointing at himself with both index fingers, indicating he was indeed a bad guy, Sirin suddenly puffed out her cheeks.
"Liar! There's no way a bad guy would be like you!" Sirin huffed, returned to her original seat, crossed her arms, and turned her head away from Shu.
But the words she muttered made Shu's heart feel both warm and cold.
"You're definitely a good person!"
Shu: "..."
For a moment, he didn't know whether to say thank you or something else...
"Alright... What about good people then? What should good people like? And what do you like?" Shu sighed, a headache forming. He felt like he was going to get meningitis or some other brain ailment one of these days.
"That's obviously the Homu Hero!" Sirin turned back, eagerly sharing. Shu smiled and nodded, encouraging her to continue.
"The Homu Hero is smart, strong, values friendship greatly, and can defeat the Demon Lord and rescue the kidnapped princess..."
"Is that so?" Shu thought of a certain Homu that had shattered him with one punch, and smiled resignedly. "Is defeating the Demon Lord also a reason why the Hero is liked?"
"Of course!" Sirin seemed quite excited. This excitement, however, was more like the joy of sharing, and it couldn't help but lift Shu's spirits as well.
"The Demon Lord is a villain! He ordered the evil dragon Homusilla to kidnap the princess! And he wants to destroy children's dreams, bullying everyone in their dreams!"
"A Demon Lord like that definitely needs to be defeated!"
Shu nodded again, looking like he agreed. But then he posed another question: "Is the one who kidnaps princesses and destroys dreams automatically the Demon Lord?"
Sirin paused, then said somewhat dazedly, "It's because he's the Demon Lord... so..."
"Then before he did all those things... why was he the Demon Lord?" Shu rested his chin on his hand, his eyes narrowing slightly as he looked at Sirin.
"He must have done other bad things..." Sirin tried to argue.
Shu shook his head. "A Demon Lord has to have a first bad deed, right? What was it?"
"It's... it's..." Sirin mumbled for a while, then her head drooped in disappointment. "I don't know..."
Shu sighed, the smile on his face having mostly vanished. "Then what about the Hero? Is someone only a hero because they resist the Demon Lord?"
Sirin nodded instinctively, then quickly shook her head after realizing.
But this time, Shu nodded. "Yes. It is precisely because the Hero resisted the [Demon Lord] that they are called a Hero."
Sirin was confused. "Wait, but... isn't the Demon Lord..."
"Regardless of the reason why the Demon Lord who was resisted did bad things, he is ultimately a bad guy who did bad things. So it's normal for everyone to dislike him."
"And Heroes are those who resist these bad things and bad guys. The Demon Lord is just one of the many they resist." Shu leaned forward, smiling warmly at the stunned Sirin, then reached out and placed his hand on her head.
"It's not because he is the Demon Lord that he did those things. It's because he did those things that he is the Demon Lord." Shu gently ruffled Sirin's hair.
"Just as a Hero isn't a Hero because they are a Hero and thus resist the Demon Lord. Rather, everyone who resists the Demon Lord... is a Hero."
Shu's hand gradually slid down, touching Sirin's cheek.
"Including you..."
Sirin nodded, still dazed. Just then, the door opened, and a travel-worn Joyce appeared at the entrance.
As Shu turned his head, he felt his hand touch empty air. When he turned back, Sirin was already back in her original spot, her back to him, silent.
Marveling at Sirin's speed, Shu stood up and looked at Joyce. "You're back so quickly. Did you find something?"
Joyce nodded. "I think there's something you need to see for yourself..."
Shu paused. What could he understand? Technology or Honkai energy?
It was 2006 now. Could there already be Honkai in Siberia?
Thinking of this, Shu couldn't help but glance back at Sirin, just in time to catch her turning her head away.
"What about Sirin then? Should we take her?" Shu asked.
Joyce shook her head. "No need... She won't leave. Absolutely not."
So certain? What did Joyce see?
It had to be said, Shu's curiosity was piqued. He took one last look at Sirin, who still had her back to him, then followed Joyce out.
Listening to their footsteps recede, Sirin quietly turned her head back. Seeing they were gone, she quickly scrambled up, ran to the door, poked her head out, and looked around again.
Confirming they had truly left, Sirin returned to the corner somewhat dejectedly and sat down.
"Only those who do bad things are Demon Lords..." she mumbled Shu's words, her hand unconsciously lifting her sleeve again, gently pressing the medical adhesive bandage on her forearm.
"If those who do bad things are Demon Lords... then why hasn't a Hero appeared to defeat them..." Sirin's expression dimmed, her small body curling up further into the corner.
"Hero... when will a Hero finally appear..."
"Please save everyone... If you can... please save everyone..."
"Save... me..."
Beneath her small palm—
Were eight or nine already scabbed-over needle marks.
"...If there is no Hero..."
"Then I will become the Hero..."
---||---
Meanwhile, Shu stared at what Joyce insisted he see. After two seconds of silence, the first words out of his mouth were—
"What the ****... What the hell is going on here?"